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Being diagnosed with all of those things -- doesn't it seem like a pharmaceutical spiral brought on by a sick process? Ever since my sister was misdiagnosed wit

Being diagnosed with all of those things -- doesn't it seem like a pharmaceutical spiral brought on by a sick process? Ever since my sister was misdiagnosed with a handful of labels and put on a handful of drugs which subsequently ruined her life for a very long time I've been interested in looking at alternatives to the pharma status quo. I read Lost Connections by Johann Hari recently and it was remarkable. The chapter on how people with similar diagnoses radically improved by joining a gardening club (reconnecting with others) makes the book worth reading, but it goes into much much more. It's worth looking up.

deleted 7y ago
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ddorian43 7y ago
None of these "alternatives" ever fixes bipolar,schizophrenia, borderline, adhd, etc. When you have those stuff, you need to take meds AND join the gardening club. You can't go manic at the gardening club.
- sibeliuss 7y ago
  Right. Those are very extreme diagnoses. Medication is often required. What this book speaks to is the problem with overprescription as applied to the average person, and offers many solutions.
  - ThrowawayP 7y ago
    Overprescription? It is so damned hard to get stimulant medications (patients don't even dare ask for fear of being labeled "drug seeking") that even people who need them badly have a hard time getting them. So, no, it does not seem like a "a pharmaceutical spiral brought on by a sick process", whatever the blazes that means.
adamsea 7y ago
IMHO what you are saying and accurate diagnoses which result in positive-to-lifechanging treatment are not mutually exclusive. There's always more than one way for a thing to go wrong ;). And I'll check that book out. There's an interesting book on addiction, based on studies on rats, arguing that addiction is usually a coping mechanism for an unhealthy environment. Again, I don't think these different things are mutually exclusive.

deleted 7y ago

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ddorian43 7y ago

None of these "alternatives" ever fixes bipolar,schizophrenia, borderline, adhd, etc. When you have those stuff, you need to take meds AND join the gardening club. You can't go manic at the gardening club.

sibeliuss 7y ago
Right. Those are very extreme diagnoses. Medication is often required. What this book speaks to is the problem with overprescription as applied to the average person, and offers many solutions.
- ThrowawayP 7y ago
  Overprescription? It is so damned hard to get stimulant medications (patients don't even dare ask for fear of being labeled "drug seeking") that even people who need them badly have a hard time getting them. So, no, it does not seem like a "a pharmaceutical spiral brought on by a sick process", whatever the blazes that means.

adamsea 7y ago

IMHO what you are saying and accurate diagnoses which result in positive-to-lifechanging treatment are not mutually exclusive. There's always more than one way for a thing to go wrong ;). And I'll check that book out. There's an interesting book on addiction, based on studies on rats, arguing that addiction is usually a coping mechanism for an unhealthy environment. Again, I don't think these different things are mutually exclusive.